Maugen-pattern armored cruiser
From Halopedia, the Halo wiki
| Maugen-pattern armored cruiser | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Class attributes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Identification: |
UNSC Three-letter code: RCS[1][2][3] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Operators: |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
In service: |
Fifth Age of Reclamation-present[4] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Maugen-pattern armored cruiser[4] (UNSC three-letter classification: RCS-class armored cruiser) is a Covenant capital warship classification.[1][2][3]
Overview[edit]
Design details[edit]
The Maugen is an older design pattern of cruiser in the Covenant fleet inventory, predating the newer and more ubiquitous Ket-pattern battlecruiser by two Ages of Reclamation.[4]The cruiser bears an extremely similar overall form to its successors, though with a bulkier and (as its name would suggest) more armoured look; the nanolaminate hull is coated in additional layers of armour plating as opposed to the smoother look of later cruisers. This is in part due to the cruiser's age - when first commissioned, Covenant energy shielding technology was limited and thus less reliable.[3][5] While less advanced than more modern vessels, the Maugen has a reputation for reliability and simple operation. These traits have proven especially useful in the wake of the Great Schism, allowing post-Covenant warlords the ability to maintain powerful capital ships even despite the loss of the empire's vast network of naval depots, Huragok technicians and legions of skilled shipmasters - these ships can be reliably maintained in a resource-scarce environment unlike their more modern counterparts.[5]
Measuring 2,000 meters long, 1,000 meters wide, and 296 meters tall, it is the second-largest known cruiser of the former Covenant fleet, overshadowed only by the Varric-pattern heavy cruiser. The port and starboard sides of the armoured cruiser each contain two primary hangars and a single dedicated strikecraft hangar, allowing for the deployment of fighters and dropships to support the vessel's operation. As on the Ket-pattern battlecruisers, a single gravity lift is located on the ship's belly, shared with the single excavation beam. The neck is additionally flanked by two large communications arrays, manifesting each as sets of three curved antennae.[2] The nose of the ship is fitted with 4 sensor vanes to allow for sensing of the area around the ship, while the aft contains the ship's two primary repulsor engines.
Armaments[edit]
The Maugen's armament is fairly standard for a Covenant cruiser, though by the modern era considered underpowered when compared to the battlecruisers of the Covenant's navy.[3] Its armaments include a single ventral Excellen-pattern excavation beam, 22 anterior Morfen-pattern plasma cannons, and a point-defence network of 60 Gon-pattern pulse laser turrets.[2][4] An additional 6 Gon-pattern plasma torpedo silos adorn the ship's dorsal surface.[4]
Alongside the primary armaments, the cruiser is armed with a "stasis enfolder system" located on the ventral surface underneath the neck of the ship. The precise function of this system is unknown, though its name suggests it is of a similar function to the Stasis cannons equipped on the Bkowe'nei-pattern Vampire aircraft.[2]
Usage[edit]
The "R", or Reverence, in the cruiser's Office of Naval Intelligence-assigned three-letter classification code, "RCS", indicates that the cruiser is capable of conducting reconnaissance missions and is capable of excavating Forerunner artifacts. The "S", or Salvation, denotes that the RCS-class armored cruiser is a dedicated warship.[6]
When originally introduced, Maugen-pattern cruisers served the Covenant empire as its primary missionary and compliance warship.[4] However, their obsolence led them to be relagated to rear-line duties,[4][5] working in patrol and occupation roles.[3] The Maugen's status as a larger vessel als